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Tyler Stowe
Chapter fourteen was about dynamic signal processors. In audio engineering, the dynamic range is the distance between the loudest possible sound and the quietest possible sound in a recording. For example, the standard CD has a dynamic range of 96 dB. The dynamic range of an audio signal can be increased or decreased by a number of dynamic processors. The dynamic processors are: Compressors, Limiters, Expanders, and Gates. Compressors and limiters limit the range of the audio signal you run through them. Expanders and gates do the exact opposite. They expand the dynamic range.
There are analog and digital processors. Analog has different circuit types such as: FET compression, Optical compression, Variable-mu, and VCA. Analog compressors and limiters have parameters along the lines of ratio, threshold, attack, release, knee, makeup gain, imput gain, output gain , and stereo linking. Digital compressors and limiters have Look-ahead, Dry/wet, Peak, and Rms. Expanders have parameters like, threshold, release,attack, and ratio. Gates have attack, hold, release, threhold, and range.
At the studio I had probably my favorite experience so far. I was asked to come in and work on a client's album they were recording. My mentor Jim, was playing drums for the album. The client's name was Billy and his band is called the Billy Stoke's band. He's been playing for years but wanted a new type of album that was really different. He hired the famous musican/rockstar Barry Sparks to play bass! Barry Sparks has played with Yngwie Malmsteen, Michael Schenker Group, Cosmosquad, John West, MVP, Uli Jon Roth, Ted Nugent, Dokken, UFO, The Scorpions, and so many more. He is currently playing in the biggest band to ever come out of Japan called the B'z and playing sold out arenas of thousands nightly. I was so excited and nervous at the same time. While I didn't do a lot, I worked behind the scenes and behind the board doing punch-ins and a few other things. I worked the entire week and am still working on it now. I got to know both Billy and Barry and let me tell you that they are some of the coolest and interesting people I've ever met.
